This invention relates to a building material which has improved flame resistance properties. More particularly, the present building material may be used in offices such as for office panel partitions, wall panels, wall coverings, ceiling panels, flooring and the like.
Building materials for offices conventionally comprise a core of a rigid support material such as fiberboard or a polymeric material which is covered by a decorative fabric. The building materials and particularly the rigid core, however, are typically highly flammable and form dense and toxic smoke on exposure to a flame. Thus a significant fire hazard to people and property exists in buildings where such materials are used in abundance.
Manufacturers of these materials have attempted to reduce these hazards by making the partitions less flammable by placing a layer of aluminum or other non-flammable material between the decorative fabric and the flammable core. These constructions, however, tend to be bulky and heavy, and the non-flammable material often reduces the aesthetic appeal of the building material because the non-flammable material is not easily hidden by the decorative fabric. Additionally, many non-flammable materials such as sheet aluminum are expensive, and thus building materials incorporating them are cost prohibitive.
An alternative is to coat or impregnate the core and/or the decorative fabric with a flame retardant composition. Exemplary compositions include those based on an inorganic hydrated compound such as hydrated alumina, hydrated magnesia, magnesium oxychloride, hydrated zinc borate, and hydrated calcium borate. These flame retardant compounds, however, are expensive and also adversely affect the aesthetic appeal of the building material.